Wednesday, July 24, 2013

The Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Peter
O'Neill, has responded to allegations of abuse on Manus Island by saying
management at the Australian-funded facility needs improvement.
Yesterday, SBS's Dateline program broke allegations of rape, abuse and serial self-harm among asylum seekers on PNG's Manus Island.
"We've got our Immigration Department that is working very closely
with their Australian counterparts in managing the processing centre and
of course we do get regular briefs from our own people," Mr O'Neill
told PNG radio program FM 100 this morning.
He added that the construction of a permanent facility would help improve conditions.
"The ongoing issue is you've got people from different areas living
together," he said. "Our aim is to try and build a permanent facility
that is going to reduce those kind of opportunities.
"There are some issues about management of the refugee processing
centre, and I think as governments we need to manage that better.
"Some of the contractors who are managing the facility are not doing the job that they are paid to do," he said.
The PNG PM also highlighted the financial benefits of the new asylum
seeker deal for his country, which will see all asylum seekers who
arrive in Australia by boat sent to Manus Island for processing and
settlement.
"With the recent deal we have done with the Australian government, we
are rebuilding the University of Papua New Guinea and also the
University of Technology," he said.
He also discussed a plan for Australian police forces to fly to Port
Moresby to help train graduate police officers in a bid to reduce
corruption.
"We are discussing this matter with the Australian government to train
police forces," he said. "Fifty policemen will be here before Christmas
under the agreement we have just reached."
Mr O'Neill said his nation would "set the priorities" on how aid
money from Australia would be spent. "The PNG government knows the
priorities we have, but sometimes we do not have the money to do it
ourselves."
He added that he didn't believe many asylum seekers would choose to stay in Papua New Guinea in the longer term.
"This is a very Christian thing to do," he said. "We are just fearful
because [many asylum seekers] are Muslims or coming from places we
don't know."
"Most of them, we know they are not genuine refugees, that means they
will be flown back to their country of origin, and if they do not want
to go there they will be taken to a third country," he said.
"I don't think the numbers people think will come and flood our country will be as big as people think," he added.
"In fact, I am very certain this will not be the case."
Meanwhile, the director of the only hospital on Manus Island disputed claims
of rape and self-harm at the asylum seeker facility, saying he had not
seen or heard of any evidence to suggest they took place.
Immigration Minister Tony Burke says he's taking the whistleblower's
accusations seriously, and will travel to Manus Island this week to
investigate the claims.
Opposition leader Tony Abbott told press this morning the government should have known about the alleged problems earlier.
"They have to be investigated and if people have done the wrong thing, well they ought to be punished," he said.
"I should point out that Scott Morrison has been warning the
government for months that there were serious risks of bullying and
abuse and violence in detention centres both here and overseas. I'm
disappointed that the government has made light of Scott Morrison's
warnings."

SYDNEY--Total SA's (TOT) foray into Papua New Guinea has gotten off to
a shaky start after two exploration wells failed to find much natural
gas, according to the French company's Australian partner in the
project.
Oil Search Ltd. (OSH.AU) said in a statement Tuesday that the first
two exploration wells in a campaign to tap new natural gas resources in
the country--Flinders and Hagana--had yielded only "relatively modest"
amounts of the fuel.
Oil Search said both wells, though, had intersected good quality types
of rock--possibly indicating the presence of larger natural gas
reserves nearby that could be targeted with further drilling. A
Perth-based spokeswoman for Total declined to comment, and a call to Oil
Search, whose shares fell 2.6% in Sydney, wasn't immediately returned.
Papua New Guinea, an impoverished southeast Asian nation that lies
just north of Australia and to the east of mainland Indonesia, has
around 22.6 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, U.K.-based
consultancy Wood Mackenzie estimates--about equal to U.S. annual
consumption of the commodity. That likely underestimates the true
potential, however, as the country has so far only been lightly explored
for oil and gas.
Recent big discoveries by the likes of Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) have
transformed Papua New Guinea, better known for its jungles and
lawlessness, into one of the world's hottest energy plays. Its promise
as a hub for new sources of natural gas has begun to lure an increasing
number of larger oil companies, including Total, looking to feed Asia's
growing appetite for fuels that burn cleaner than coal.
Rival Exxon's US$19 billion liquefied-natural-gas project, dubbed PNG
LNG, is among the more advanced in Papua New Guinea. The facility is
scheduled to ship its first LNG cargos to Japan, China and Taiwan next
year, while more recent gas discoveries have led Exxon and its partners
already to begin planning an expansion of the project.
Aiming to mirror Exxon's success, Total last year bought stakes
ranging from 35%-50% in five exploration blocks owned by Oil Search in
the Gulf of Papua that it hoped would underpin the creation of another
big LNG plant in the country. The French oil producer has a strong
foothold in the Asia-Pacific region already, having spent billions of
dollars buying up stakes in two large LNG projects in neighbouring
Australia.
Total bought into the Papua New Guinean blocks by promising to cover
the drilling costs for Oil Search, a much smaller player. No specific
price tag was ever disclosed.
Andrew Williams, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets in Melbourne, said
the first two wells hadn't delivered a significant discovery, but
described the drilling results as "mixed" in view of the quality of the
rocks encountered by the wells.
"The play remains high risk but encouraging enough to commit to
another well in the current programme," Mr. Williams said, noting that
Oil Search had identified more than 30 potential drilling prospects in
the area. Hagana is still drilling ahead to its targeted depth, while a
third well is also being prepared.
"Although the volumes at Flinders and Hagana are likely to be
relatively modest, the company has been sufficiently encouraged to take
up a further well option, and will drill the Kidukidu prospect once
Hagana-1 is completed," Oil Search said in its statement.
Underscoring the country's perceived potential, Exxon has also started
talks to invest in U.S.-based InterOil Corp.'s (IOC) Papua New Guinean
natural gas assets, and Japan's Mitsubishi Corp. (8058.TO) agreed, in
February, to a US$280 million deal to buy stakes in several natural gas
discoveries made by Canada's Talisman Energy Inc. (TLM).

Write to Ross Kelly at ross.kelly@wsj.com

Wood Group PSN awarded Papua New Guinea contract

23 July 2013 | 08:42am

StockMarketWire.com
- Wood Group PSN has been awarded a contract by Esso Highlands Ltd, a
subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corp, to provide engineering, procurement,
construction and maintenance services to support its Papua New Guinea
(PNG)liquefied natural gas (LNG) operations.

Under the contract, WGPSN will provide brownfield engineering and
procurement support to ExxonMobil's operations in PNG, including
construction and maintenance services to both the Hides gas conditioning
plant in the highlands,and the LNG plant northwest of Port Moresby. It
is effective from August 1, 2013.

- See more at:
http://www.stockmarketwire.com/article/4636709/Wood-Group-PSN-awarded-Papua-New-Guinea-contract.html#sthash.Ace9nROf.dpuf

Wood Group PSN awarded Papua New Guinea contract

23 July 2013 | 08:42am

StockMarketWire.com
- Wood Group PSN has been awarded a contract by Esso Highlands Ltd, a
subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corp, to provide engineering, procurement,
construction and maintenance services to support its Papua New Guinea
(PNG)liquefied natural gas (LNG) operations.

Under the contract, WGPSN will provide brownfield engineering and
procurement support to ExxonMobil's operations in PNG, including
construction and maintenance services to both the Hides gas conditioning
plant in the highlands,and the LNG plant northwest of Port Moresby. It
is effective from August 1, 2013.

- See more at:
http://www.stockmarketwire.com/article/4636709/Wood-Group-PSN-awarded-Papua-New-Guinea-contract.html#sthash.Ace9nROf.dpuf

Wood Group PSN awarded Papua New Guinea contract

23 July 2013 | 08:42am

StockMarketWire.com
- Wood Group PSN has been awarded a contract by Esso Highlands Ltd, a
subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corp, to provide engineering, procurement,
construction and maintenance services to support its Papua New Guinea
(PNG)liquefied natural gas (LNG) operations.

Under the contract, WGPSN will provide brownfield engineering and
procurement support to ExxonMobil's operations in PNG, including
construction and maintenance services to both the Hides gas conditioning
plant in the highlands,and the LNG plant northwest of Port Moresby. It
is effective from August 1, 2013.

- See more at:
http://www.stockmarketwire.com/article/4636709/Wood-Group-PSN-awarded-Papua-New-Guinea-contract.html#sthash.Ace9nROf.dpuf

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

The funeral service of respected senior public
servant and PNG Media Council president Joe Kanekane will be held at St
Joseph’s Catholic Church, East Boroko, on Wednesday, July 24.

Kanekane, 44, from Kowengil village in Ialibu,
Southern Highlands, was director of the PNG Law and Justice Sector Secretariat
(LJSS), at the times of his death from heart attack at Tabubil Hospital in
Western province on Sunday, July 14, while on vacation.

Kanekane in his role as
PNG Media Council president.-Picture courtesy of Community Development
Initiative

Funeral service will be held from 9am to 12pm, after
which the body will be taken to the Funeral Home at Erima, where it lies until
6pm when it is taken to the family home at Rainbow Village to overnight.

On Thursday morning, the body will be flown to
Kagamuga Airport in Mt Hagen, where the Baisu Correctional Services band will
lead proceedings.

The funeral possession then leaves for Imbonggu,
Southern Highlands, stepping along the wayside at Telgha LJSS project sites,
and Lower Nebilyer for last respects, before departing for Imbonggu where it
will be met by MP and Works Minister Francis Awesa at Walum district office.

The body will be then taken to Kanekane’s beloved
Kowengil village, where the traditional haus
krai (house of mourning) begins, and lasts until next Monday for funeral
service and burial.

Kanekane held an MBA,
a degree in arts with honours from the University of Papua New Guinea and a
post-graduate diploma from the University of Wales.

He was president of
the PNG Media Council, chairman of the Individual and Community Rights Advocacy
Forum (ICRAF) board, a member of the National Scouts Association Board and was the
chairman of the PNG Censorship board.

He was also on the
Caritas PNG board, was co-chairman of the Community Coalition against
Corruption and was an accomplished poet and writer.

Kanekane travelled
around the country while he was growing up as his father, Kanekane Kepa, was a
jail warder.

He was a trained primary school teacher before he took up university
studies in 1989.

His mother Cecilia
told The National at his haus krai that Kanekane was born in Maprik, East Sepik, on Sept 9, 1968.

He began primary
school in Wapenamanda, Enga, and continued on to Laiagam, Banz in Western
Highlands and Mt Hagen.

Kanekane went on to the
Madang Teachers’ College where he trained for two years and then taught in Western
Highlands before taking up studies at UPNG.

“He said he loved
writing and wanted to become a journalist,” his mother recalled.

He did, with a
successful career at Word Publishing before joining LJSS.

“It’s a big loss to
the family and tribe, law and justice sector, media and the whole country,”
LJSS chief internal auditor Robert Tukundo, a cousin of Kanekane, said.

Papua New Guinea's opposition leader Belden Namah
says he will challenge the deal with Australia to process and resettle
asylum seekers in the country's courts.

Mr Namah has told Australia Network's Newsline the deal is in breach of Papua New Guinea's constitution and human rights standards in United Nations conventions.
"I have instructed my lawyers, we are filing next week to challenge the asylum seekers arrangement with Australia," he said.
"I
personally believe that I have a very good chance of success because
Papua New Guinea's prime minister Peter O'Neill has failed to adhere to
the constitution of our country."
Mr Namah says the asylum seekers
are looking for protection in Australia and should not be forced
against their will to stay in Papua New Guinea.
"We are basically acting against the rights of individuals who are seeking to find asylum in Australia," he said.
"We
are pushing these people, who have travelled miles, travelled through
stormy waters to reach Australia - they are not coming to look for
asylum in Papua New Guinea."
He says the deal is a "political
gimmick" and is not needed to boost Papua New Guinea's economy given the
country's wealth of natural resources.
"We already have a
multi-billion LNG project... that's enough money already to be able to
buy enough medicine, to be able to buy enough beds for hospitals, rural
hospitals in Papua New Guinea."
"We don't need money from asylum seekers - I see it as a total joke."
Mr
Namah says Papua New Guinea's high poverty rate is due to the "poor
financial management" of successive leaders and governments, rather than
a lack of funds.
"It's not because we don't have money," he said.

By Rory Callinan, Daniel Flitton

Greater control of Australia's multimillion-dollar aid
program to Papua New Guinea appears to have been handed back to the
developing country as part of a sweetener to accept asylum seekers.
Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, Peter O'Neill, boasted on
Monday that he had achieved a ''realignment'' of the country's aid
program from Australia as part of the recently negotiated agreement.
Australia has spent billions of dollars in aid in the country
and, last financial year, the amount was tipped to rise to about $500
million - the majority of which was to be closely controlled by AusAID
in a bid to avoid corruption.

Speaking just after arriving back in the country on Monday,
an upbeat Mr O'Neill said his government would set the priorities for
all of Australia's aid programs.
''We have had experience of where AusAID programs have been
running parallel to our own programs and, of course, when the AusAID
programs are delivered, there is nobody to take carriage of the programs
after they are completed,'' he said.
Mr O'Neill said the country had developed programs to counter corruption.
''We already have AusAID workers in our financial treasury
and across all departments, so I think those fears are unfounded,'' he
said.
While Mr O'Neill was happy to give some insight into what had
been offered to achieve the deal, he gave few details about how asylum
seeker processing would work, except to say would-be refugees could
arrive ''any day''.
He could not say how many refugees his country would accept.
''I cannot know what's going to happen in the future,'' he
said. ''I don't think the numbers are going to be as big as expected.''
Papua New Guinea has battled corruption issues for years,
leading to Australia's aid donations being closely managed and monitored
by Australian government interests.
Last year, Sam Koim, the head of Papua New Guinea's new
anti-corruption unit, Taskforce Sweep, described the country as
suffering from a level of fraud that had ''migrated from sporadic
corruption to systematic and now an institutionalised form of
corruption''.
A spokesman for Foreign Minster Bob Carr said Australia
always had a partnership agreement with Papua New Guinea over where aid
money is spent, with Australia deciding the amount.
He said Mr O'Neill had identified health, law and order and
education as the main priorities for Australian aid but not all the $500
million program would be directed to these areas.
''Each individual aid project needs to meet the test of merit
and show to be an appropriate use of aid money,'' the spokesman said.
But the country’s opposition leader, Belden Namah, spoke
critically of the deal. ‘‘[The Prime Minister] has failed miserably by
not consulting the people through their elected representatives on the
floor of parliament,’’ he said. "The problem in PNG is not money.
"It's about bad financial management and corruption."

A history of PNG corruption

June 19, 2013: Law enforcement sources tell
Fairfax up to $500 million may have been stolen from PNG government
legal aid funds over several years, which may have been siphoned to
Australian banks.October 8, 2012: An analysis by Task Force
Sweep (TFS), a national corruption watchdog, finds up to half of PNG’s
7.6 billion kina (about $3.5 billion AUD) development budget from 2009
through 2011 was lost to corrupt practices or mismanagement by public
officials and government departments.16 February 2011: Australia’s High
Commissioner to Papua New Guinea says he’s very concerned an Australian
aid advisor may have been attacked for fighting corruption.2011: Transparency International’s Global
Corruption Barometer shows that 85% of PNG people survey found that the
level of corruption has increased in the last three years.2007: In a diplomatic cable later released
by Wikileaks, the US embassy in Port Moresby refers to a PNG Health
Minister: "mostly remembered for his insistence that he was just a
politician and therefore could not be held responsible for the fact that
the country’s hospitals had run out of medicines while his ministry was
still flush with cash".with Daniel Flitton

ByPeter Michael in Port Moresby

PAPUA New Guinea's Prime Minister Peter O'Neill is unclear on a total quota, cost or how long Australia will foot the bill for the refugee resettlement deal struck with the Federal Government.

Mr O'Neill flew back into a political storm in Port Moresby yesterday after signing the plan in Brisbane on Friday and publicly appealed to his strife-torn nation to accept the agreement.The Pacific leader revealed the first boatload of asylum seekers to be processed under new rules was due at Manus Island detention centre, 810km north of the capital, within days.But he was unable to put a dollar figure on the total cost of the refugee and resettlement program, a time frame on how long it would continue, or how much Kevin Rudd had committed to funding in the enhanced billion-dollar aid budget."Costings have not been done. I cannot just simply give you a figure that is imaginary,'' Mr O'Neill said."I think Papua New Guinea has done well out of this. It is a good deal for the country.''Asked how many refugees PNG could realistically accept, Mr O'Neill said he believed the number of boat arrivals, averaging about 100 a day, would drastically fall off under the prospect of resettlement."We don't know the numbers yet. I don't think the numbers are going to be as big as what we think. I think there will be a quick decline. You can see from the report that smugglers who are now profiting from this exercise have already said they are going to stop boat people travelling."Genuine refugees will still travel but not the economic migrants."I think it will fall off and there will be much lower numbers.''Manus Island facility would be fast-tracked from its present capacity of 250 to house 600 by next year while they would negotiate with other Pacific Island nations to get them to accept a certain quota of genuine refugees, he said.His decision to support Mr Rudd's political deterrent to resettle genuine refugees who illegally arrive by boat in Australia has caused uproar in the poverty-stricken developing nation with a population of 7 million.Locals have expressed concern about a "culture clash" and open hostility to the mostly Muslim refugees."I think those fears are unfounded, there is nothing in the agreement that says refugees will get priority over our citizens," he said."We call ourselves a Christian country. I think we need to show some compassion and some sympathy to genuine refugees.''Mr O'Neill said it was not a new deal but one struck with the Howard government in 2006, restarted by the Gillard government, and "extended further" by the Rudd Government.PNG is a land of contrasts full of potential in tourism, mining and a $19 billion gas project.It is also beset by lawlessness, high unemployment, poverty, crumbling infrastructure and a health, housing and education crisis.Under the new refugee deal, Australia will half fund the rebuild of PNG higher education system, build a new hospital at Lae, and upgrade the airport, health centres and schools at Manus Island.PNG Opposition leader Belden Nama said it was an "agreement between two men" and"Peter O'Neill is making decisions like a chicken with no head," he said.He said it was kow-towing to old colonial masters."Do we need to make money off asylum seekers? No. PNG's problem is not money, but bad financial management."At the notorious Six Mile market, a haven for violence and petty crime, betel nut seller Grace Moh, 25, said they were deadly opposed to the move."We don't want to get corrupted by other cultures," said fellow shopkeeper Obert Baree."They come to spoil us."PNG has passed a motion in Parliament to talk about banning other religions from the Christian-dominated nation. Island nations to get them to accept a certain quota of genuine refugees, he said.

His decision to support Mr Rudd's political deterrent to resettle genuine refugees who illegally arrive by boat in Australia has caused uproar in the poverty-stricken developing nation with a population of 7 million.Locals have expressed concern about a "culture clash" and open hostility to the mostly Muslim refugees."I think those fears are unfounded, there is nothing in the agreement that says refugees will get priority over our citizens," he said."We call ourselves a Christian country. I think we need to show some compassion and some sympathy to genuine refugees.''Mr O'Neill said it was not a new deal but one struck with the Howard government in 2006, restarted by the Gillard government, and "extended further" by the Rudd Government.PNG is a land of contrasts full of potential in tourism, mining and a $19 billion gas project.It is also beset by lawlessness, high unemployment, poverty, crumbling infrastructure and a health, housing and education crisis.Under the new refugee deal, Australia will half fund the rebuild of PNG higher education system, build a new hospital at Lae, and upgrade the airport, health centres and schools at Manus Island.PNG Opposition leader Belden Nama said it was an "agreement between two men" and"Peter O'Neill is making decisions like a chicken with no head," he said.He said it was kow-towing to old colonial masters."Do we need to make money off asylum seekers? No. PNG's problem is not money, but bad financial management."At the notorious Six Mile market, a haven for violence and petty crime, betel nut seller Grace Moh, 25, said they were deadly opposed to the move."We don't want to get corrupted by other cultures," said fellow shopkeeper Obert Baree."They come to spoil us."PNG has passed a motion in Parliament to talk about banning other religions from the Christian-dominated nation.

Tuesday July 23 is a public holiday in Papua New Guinea and marks the 71st
anniversary of the first engagement by PNG and Australian forces against
the invading Japanese in WWII.Out of the chaos and death that
followed came the enduring heroism of the Kokoda Trail, and the special
relationship that has bound PNG and Australia ever since.One of the bloodiest campaigns of the Second World War began 66 years ago on Wednesday this week, July 23.And it has forever sealed the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea.It
was on this day, in 1942, that Japanese troops landed on the northern
coast of New Guinea and unexpectedly began to march over the Owen
Stanley Ranges with the intent of capturing Port Moresby.Had they succeeded, the mainland of Australia would have come under dire threat.July
23 - Remembrance Day - marks the 60th anniversary of the first
engagement between the opposing troops on July 23, 1942, and from that
engagement, as the Australian force was progressively outnumbered, began
the long fighting withdrawal over the Owen Stanley Range.The 21st
Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Potts DSO MC, was rushed to New Guinea
and within days, its 1500 men were closing in on the precarious Owen
Stanley Ranges in an attempt to position themselves to stop the advance
of the Japanese forces - now building up to over 10, 000 men.The
brigade also engaged the ill-trained but gallant militia 39th Battalion
at Isurava in the foothills on the far side of the range.Kokoda was arguably Australia's most significant campaign of the Second World War.More
Australians died in the seven months of fighting in Papua, and the
Japanese came closer to Australia, than in any other campaign.Many
of those young Australians, whose average age was between 18 and 19, now
lie buried at the Bomana War Cemetery outside Port Moresby.The
famous photograph of "fuzzy wuzzy angel" Raphael Oimbari leading a
blindfolded wounded Australian epitomizes the close relationship between
Australians and Papua New Guineans which has come about because of the
battle of Kokoda.To read between the lines of "Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels", the celebrated poem by Australian digger Bert Beros, will bring you to tears.The
poem, while sentimental, touches a chord that has endured to this day
in the hearts of both Australians and Papua New Guineans.It tells of
the prayers of worried Australian mothers, whose young sons are
fighting the Japanese on that rugged trail, and how their prayers are
answered in the form of "fuzzy wuzzy angels".

Many a mother in Australia when the busy day is doneSends a prayer to the Almighty for the keeping of her sonAsking that an angel guide him and bring him safely backNow we see those prayers are answered on the Owen Stanley Track.

For they haven't any halos, only holes slashed in their earsAnd their faces worked by tattoos with scratch pins in their hairBringing back the badly wounded just as steady as a horseUsing leaves to keep the rain off and as gentle as a nurse

Slow and careful in the bad places on the awful mountain trackThe look upon their faces would make you think Christ was blackNot a move to hurt the wounded as they treat him like a saintIt's a picture worth recording that an artist's yet to paint

Many a lad will see his mother and husbands see their wivesJust because the fuzzy wuzzy carried them to save their livesFrom mortar bombs and machine gun fire or chance surprise attacksTo the safety and the care of doctors at the bottom of the track

May the mothers of Australia when they offer up a prayerMention those impromptu angels with their fuzzy wuzzy hair.

- Bert Beros

In
1942, a seldom-used track climbed from the small village of Buna on the
north coast of Papua, over the Owen Stanley Ranges and on to Port
Moresby.The track was fairly easy up the slopes through Gorari and
Oivi to the village of Kokoda, which stood on a small plateau 400 metres
above sea level, flanked by mountains rising to over 2000 metres.It
then climbed over steep ridges and through deep valleys to Deniki,
Isurava, Kagi, Ioribaiwa, Ilolo and, at Ower's Corner, linked with a
vehicle road leading from plantations in the hills above Port Moresby
down to the coastal plains.Between Kokoda and Ilolo, the track often
climbed up gradients so steep that it was heartbreaking labor for
burdened men to climb even a few hundred yards.Much of the track was through dense rainforest, which enclosed the narrow passage between walls of thick bush.At higher levels the terrain became moss and stunted trees, which were often covered in mist.From July to November 1942 this was the setting for a bitter campaign to prevent the fall of Port Moresby.On
January 23, 1942, the Japanese landed at Kavieng on New Ireland and at
Rabaul on New Britain where they quickly overcame the Australian
defenders.On March 8, the Japanese established themselves firmly at Lae and Salamaua in Morobe.But the famous Battle of the Coral Sea from May 5 to 8 averted a Japanese sea-borne invasion of Port Moresby.The
American success at the Battle of Midway in June not only destroyed
Japan's capacity for undertaking long range offensives but also provided
the Americans with the opportunity to move from the defensive to the
offensive.The Japanese, who were regularly bombing Port Moresby with
20 to 30 bombers with fighter escort, decided on the overland attack
across the Owen Stanley Ranges.On the Kododa Trail the Australian
7th Division resisted the Japanese General Horii's overland attempt to
capture Port Moresby, and the advance was halted within 30 miles of the
city.A small force of Australians known as "Maroubra Force" arrived
at Buna on July 21st, 1942, as the first Japanese force of 1500 men
landed at Gona, eight miles to the west.What followed will forever go down as one of the most heroic defensive actions in the annals of military history.The
first engagement between the opposing troops was on July 23, 1942, and
from that engagement, as the Australian force was progressively
outnumbered, began the long fighting withdrawal over the Owen Stanley
Range.Kokoda is a small plateau on the north-east slopes of the Owen
Stanley Range and possessed a small airstrip the retention of which,
for at least as long as it would take Australia to fly in supplies and
reinforcements, was of great importance.However, the remnants of
"Maroubra Force", exhausted by a month's constant fighting, were unable
to achieve this. Valiant though their effort was, even recapturing the
plateau after being driven out, the Japanese need was of equal
importance.They needed a forward base at Kokoda for their drive over
the ranges along the "Kokoda Trail" to Port Moresby and they struck
before the Australians were able to muster sufficient strength.The
initiative now remained with the Japanese and Australian withdrawal
began again - through Isurava, Alola, Templeton's Crossing, Myola,
Efogi, Menari and Nauro until at Ioribaiwa Ridge, beyond which the
Japanese could not be permitted to penetrate, a final stand was made.From
August 26 to September 16 in 1942 Brigadier Potts's Maroubra Force,
consisting of the 2/16th Battalion, together with the 2/14th, the 2/27th
and the militia 39th and scattered elements of the ill-trained 53rd
Battalion - outnumbered and outgunned by an estimated 5 to 1 - fought
the Japanese to an eventual standstill on the ridges overlooking Port
Moresby.Two main battles were fought during that period (Isurava, August 26 to 29 and Brigade 'Butchers' Hill, from September 6 to 8).In
general, the desperately-tired but determined force kept themselves
between the Japanese Major General Horri's South Sea Force and Port
Moresby -- defending, retreating and then counter-attacking in a
masterly display of strategic defence.Conditions were almost indescribable.It
rained for most of the time, the weary men endured some of the most
difficult terrain in the world and they were racked by malaria and
dysentery.But they kept on fighting, making the enemy pay dearly for
every yard of ground. They bought time for those being prepared to come
up from Port Moresby to relieve them.The Australians, however, had a surprise in store for the enemy.This
was in the form of 25-pounder guns brought from Moresby to the road
head at Ower's Corner and then laboriously dragged into position at
Imita Ridge, opening up on the enemy's barricades.It was now the turn of the Japanese to suffer what the Australians had suffered in the preceding two months.Australian shelling smashed Japanese defences and aggressive patrols inflicted severe losses.On the morning of September 28th, the Australians were closing in and it became evident then the Japanese were withdrawing.The chase, with the Australians the pursuers, was now on.The
Japanese, despite sickness and hunger, were still formidable and
tenaciously defended all the places in their withdrawal as the
Australians had in their retreat some weeks earlier.Kokoda was entered on November 2 and this was the beginning of the end of Japanese hopes in Papua.The campaign now entered a phase known as "The Battle of the Beaches".The
Japanese were bottled up in the area from where they had begun their
drive against Port Moresby some months previously -- Buna and Gona.This
final campaign began on November 19, 1942, and ended on January 22,
1943, when all organised resistance by the Japanese in Papua ended.Lt
Col Honner DSO MC, who commanded the gallant 39th in the campaign,
later wrote of these men in the foreword to Peter Brune's book 'Those
Rugged Bloody Heroes': "They have joined the immortals." Of those that
did not survive, he wrote: "Wherever their bones may lie, the courage of
heroes is consecrated in the hearts and engraved in the history of the
free."

Reports from Port Moresby General Hospital
suggest Kapris and fellow escapee Raphael Walimini were both in a
shoot-out with police outside the capital, and were taken to the
hospital late yesterday evening.Kapris and Walimini escaped from the maximum security Bomana prison in May, using two pistols allegedly smuggled in by a guard.Kapris is well known in PNG for his daring bank robberies and three prison escapes.A reward of $US46,000 was offered for information that leads to his capture, but police said the public response was slow.In June, Commander Andrews said he was aware his own officers are assisting the bank robber to hide in the capital.

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O'Neill says projects
agreed to by Australia in exchange for expanding its asylum seeker
processing capability have not been costed.
Australia and PNG agreed on Friday that asylum seekers
travelling to Australia by boat will be turned away, processed and
potentially resettled in PNG.
In exchange, Australia has a agreed to a raft of
infrastructure programs in the university, roads, health and law and
order sector.
"The costings for the Ramu-Madang highway has not been done,
design and costings for of course Lae hospital has not been done. So it
costs into millions of Kina," Mr O'Neill told journalists in Port
Moresby upon his return from Brisbane on Monday.
"But I cannot just simply give you a figure that is imaginary."
When asked where in PNG asylum seekers will be resettled
under the plan he replied: "We'll get there when we start processing
them."
Mr also O'Neill declined to nominate an upper limit to the number of asylum seekers he expects to be processed in PNG.
Manus MP Ronnie Knight has said he was told up to 3000.
"It'll be down to what the capacity on the ground can take," Mr O'Neill said.
"Listen, I cannot give you a figure, I cannot know what's going to happen in the future.
"We are hoping this is going to stop the non genuine refugees
and asylum seekers coming into our region. I don't think the numbers
are going to be as big as what we think its going to be."
He cited Australian media reports of people smugglers saying the expanded processing plan had already had an impact.
"You will see genuine people travelling, but non genuine economic migrants will fall off," he said.
PNG's opposition whip Tobias Kulang on Monday took to the national newspapers to blast the plan.
He said Mr O'Neill should have explained the scheme to the nation's parliament before announcing it in Australia.
"I am convinced we are far less equipped to handle the
situation at this stage, especially to respond and to accommodate these
asylum seekers.
"Australia must also come out and explain what and how it plans to assist PNG manage this affair."
Church leaders have also condemned the plan.

Monday, July 22, 2013

A respected expert on international refugee law
has told RN Breakfast that Australia doesn’t have an asylum problem, but
a political problem, and refugees are paying the price, as James Bourne reports.

The
Federal Government has continued to defend its decision to send all
asylum seekers arriving by boat in Australia to Papua New Guinea. Under
the regional agreement, Australia will bear the full cost of the
plan—including the cost of genuine refugees being resettled.

Dr James Hathaway, an expert on international refugee law, told RN Breakfast that Kevin Rudd’s announcement on Friday was entirely unprecedented.‘This
plan is without question the most bizarre overreaction I have seen in
more than 30 years of working on refugee law,’ said Dr Hathaway. ‘It
just makes no sense.'‘The only mandatory deportation to PNG is
going to be so-called boat arrivals. Does the Prime Minister think that
every refugee should arrive with a Qantas first class ticket in order to
be real?'Dr Hathaway, a professorial fellow at the University of
Melbourne, suggested that the deal struck between Australia and Papua
New Guinea was in breach of the the United Nations Convention relating
to the Status of Refugees.‘The convention itself says you can’t
penalise refugees for arriving without authorisation,’ he said. ‘There
is no visa that Australia or anybody else gives for a person to come and
seek asylum.' ‘To take people who are... coming and asking for
asylum and dumping them into the hell hole of PNG is in my view both an
illegal penalty and a discriminatory penalty, which puts Australia in
breach of the convention on two points.’The crisis Prime Minister
Kevin Rudd says is addressed by the deal doesn't even exist, Dr
Hathaway said. Compared to other developed countries, Australia’s intake
of 30,000 refugees is ‘a totally average, absolutely manageable
number’. ‘What is really striking about this is that Australia,
unlike any developed country that I know, has been attracting almost
exclusively genuine refugees as boat arrivals,’ Dr Hathaway told RN.‘It’s
the boat people who seem to have attracted his ire. It’s the most
extraordinarily bizarre singling out of the group that...ought to be the
very group that we should care about the most,’ he said. ‘So
Australia does not have an asylum problem, it has a political problem,
and refugees are being made to pay the price for Kevin Rudd wanting to
appear, I think, more butch that Julia Gillard and more reactionary than
Tony Abbott.’‘The people who are so desperate—who
so fear for their loss of life that they’re prepared to put their fate
into the hands of smugglers and take a horrible boat journey to survive—are the very ones that Australia seems to want to punish.’Dr
Hathaway suggested that sending genuine refugees to Papua New Guinea
was a reckless plan, despite the nation being a signatory to the Refugee
Convention.‘We’re talking about a country that ranks 168th in
the world in terms of life expectancy, where more than half the country
doesn’t have sanitation or clean water, one in two women in PNG have
been raped, homosexuals can to jail for 14 years, this is where we’re
going to send people who have done nothing wrong, other than have the
courage to say that they don’t want to be persecuted for who they are in
the country where they lived.'The High Court’s 2011 ruling on
the Gillard government’s proposed Malaysia Solution stated that an
arrangement that doesn’t legally guarantee refugees the right to work,
education and access to the courts breached obligations under the UN
refugee convention. Despite these rights not being guaranteed by the PNG
agreement, Australian Attorney General Mark Dreyfus has said that the
arrangement ‘complies with our international obligations under the
refugee convention’.Dr Hathaway disagrees.‘The word
‘rights’ doesn’t even appear in the agreement that the Prime Minister of
Australia signed with the Prime Minister of PNG,’ he said. ‘That’s what
makes it illegal.'‘The government seems to think that its only
obligation under the convention is to make sure that somebody at risk of
being persecuted doesn’t get sent back to persecution.' ‘That
argument is what the government put to the High Court of Australia in
the Malaysia case and the High Court quite explicitly rejected that
argument.’

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